


Blue Moon

by dumm



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M, Spiritual, future smut, tribe au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-08
Updated: 2018-04-08
Packaged: 2019-04-20 09:26:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14257956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dumm/pseuds/dumm
Summary: Jongin loves the story of the Great Father and the Blue Moon and Kyungsoo aspires to be his own story.





	Blue Moon

It's nearly a clear night. Only a few clouds, shining white in the light of the Great Father, the biggest moon in the night sky, while countless stars stare down at him. He can see the Way of the Ancestors, a radiant path of stars, so far away that it looks like morning fog made out of fireflies.

Once he tried to count the stars, the lights of their ancestors. Without success. But some day when he will be one of them, he will have time, enough wisdom and will to find out how many there are. But right now there is something else on his mind.

When the Great Father shows his full face every living creature is filled with more power and it's the perfect time to gather a lot of herbs. Healing herbs in particular.  
But even in the light of the Great Father, the stars and the second moon, the Blue Moon, it's still night and Jongin's eyes are not as bad as the ones of their wisest shaman in the whole tribe, but he still finds it very difficult to be sure he's cutting the right herbs in the right spots.

At day time he has no problems with it. He knows which plants are the right ones, how to pluck or cut them. Jongin knows what he's doing.  
In day light.

Right now he hopes that he will find enough plants and herbs in the first place. It would be a waste of blooming energy to cut them wrong or not cut them at all. The tribe is always in need of good and helping herbal medicines or just seasoning.

Of course Jongin always tries to do his best, under the sun or under the full moon. Every person in the tribe has their own task, a lot of them the same, but one shaman or one hunter was never enough.

Every member of the Gomdun tribe has to choose one of two paths as soon as they come of age. The path of the warrior or the path of the healer. Of course that is not the only thing the tribe has to offer. Tailor, furrier, cooks, craftsmen of all arts, animal breeders, the list is long.  
But every fisherman and every bowyer is either a hunter or a healer. A few tribe members would concentrate on only their path to become a warrior or a shaman, a professional in their path. And the best warrior or shaman would stand next to their chieftain, decide with him.

Jongin wants to be a healer, although he is also a good hunter. Not the best of his age, but still knows how to hunt a deer or a rabbit, skin and gut it. He just always likes picking flower and herbs best. Jongin feels better to help a person than to kill an animal.

When he was a kid he always wanted to be a breeder, because he liked – and still likes – to spend time with the falcons or the goats. But it turned out that he's really good at making salves and one of the shamans convinced him to choose the path of the healer and stay in it.

The bright blade of his sickle shines under the light of the moons while he cuts a small plant with a satisfied noise. Jongin let his thumb slide over one of the blossoms, feels the soft surface while the cold air sends goosebumps over his naked arms.

It is still summer but the last days were cold. His simple wide knitted poncho decorated with colored wood beads gives not enough warmth in a night like today. He is not freezing, but he feels cold, is tired and hopes that he'll be finished soon so that he can sleep till noon.

It takes him a few more minutes until he's pleased with his pickings before he heads back to the tribe. Most of the time he's staring in the sky, a smile on his face, while his dark eyes watch the smaller moon on the dark horizon.  
The Blue Moon is always full and in most nights it looks like there is a blue sheen around him. He is smaller than the Great Father, but every night he's there, while the Great Father turns his face around to watch over all the living and dead.

There is a story about the Blue Moon and the Great Father. It's Jongin's favorite story and he is never tired of hearing it.

The Mother of All, Mother Earth, Mother of all Living, there are countless names for her, lived for a long time before she first created the water and the hills. She felt lonely and wanted to give life, to create something wonder- and meaningful, so she tore two pieces out of herself, creating the Great Father and The Eye. One child on each side she finally created the gods and then the living beings.  
Without a word from the loving mother, The Eye and the Great Father started to fulfill their own tasks. While The Eye was spending warmth, light and life, the Great Father watched over everyone, guided the dead into the dark sky where they became shining stars, next to him to live forever.  
But he also watched over the stars, turned his face around. He felt bad for not watching over the Living and his mournfulness lured the Blue Moon next to him.  
He fell in love with the Great Father and promised to always watch over the living if he could stay next to him and be his lover.

Romantic.  
Maybe that's why he loves this story so much, why he falls in love with the sky every night. Every time he looks up in the dark, he can see the Blue Moon, the Lover, and feel secure. Because only a lover can watch over you better than your own mother.

He sighs, tired but relaxed, and enjoys the clear night air, the chilly moss under his naked feet and hopes that someday he can be as meaningful as the Blue Moon himself.

 

\- - -

 

The Eye is at her highest point, bringing joy to all the kids, running around the tents and huts while laughing with high spirits. Jongin is still tired, even after eating some fruit and drinking fresh spring water. His dark brown hair is messy and he's not in the mood to fix it.

His way leads him to one of the shamans, one of his beloved teachers, Yongsun. She is many summers older than him, even if you can't see it. Her hair has a brown tone, just a little lighter than his own and her eyes are dark and always full of wisdom and joy. Jongin loves her personality and the way she talks to everyone. He's sure that in a few years she could be the Great Shaman, standing next to the chieftain while giving smart suggestions to everyone not only their leader.

“Jongin,” she says as as she can see that hes on his way to her. A kind smile is on her have.

Yongsun is sitting in the shadow of an ancient palmate maple, protecting herself from the hot sunshine. The tree over her head is a big one, right now the leaves have a rich green color but as soon as the summer ends all leaves will turn glaring red like a comforting bonfire.

A lot of plain brown bowls are in front of her, on the colorful blanked she is sitting on. He can see a mortar with a pestle and a lot of fresh and dried herbs around her. Like most tribe members in summer she is just wearing a pair of loose and light pants out of fabric and a lot of trinkets around her neck and arms. Her hair is braided, falling over her left shoulder.

“Was your search this night successful?” she's asking.

“It was all right,” he answers, sitting down on the blanket. His hands are detaching the small leather pouch he is mostly wearing on his belt, pulling the strings away. He opens the herb pouch and hands it to her.

Yongsun quickly eyes the contents inside before she spills the herbs gently on the blanket right in front of her. She's taking a second and diligent look at Jongin's full moon collection and he feels nervous. Jongin is not sure if the silence is a good sign but as soon as she is showing a soft smile he's relieved.

“Well done.”

“Thanks,” he grins, a little bit of pride in it.

Jongin is pretty sure that he was not one of the best gatherers the last night, but a 'well done' is enough for him. At least he was giving his best. Like always. And hearing praise, no matter how small it was, from Yongsun was all he wanted to hear.

Right after his words she's putting a bowl of water in front of him.

“Help me clean the twisted red-roots,” she demands with a soft voice. Of course Jongin is listening, picking all the named roots from the blanked and putting them into the water.

There are a lot of different types to process the plants. Some of them only work fresh, a lot of them are best when dry. It always depends on the wanted result. The twisted red-roots always have the same first step: Cleaning. Getting rid of the dirt so you can see why they have that name. Clean roots have a slight red color and sometimes it's necessary to rub the first layer of the skin down. After that they mostly make bitter medicine out of it.

Jongin has already learned how to make the paste, but there is also a way to make a healing and soothing drink out of it.

“Can you show me how do make the drink out of the roots today?” he asks, after thinking about it.

“Sure, but first we need to prepare all the other herbs. You can cut the roots after they're clean.”

Jongin looks up for a moment, water dripping down from his fingers, back in the bowl of water and twisted red-roods. Yongsun was busy pestling some plants into a green mass with an strong scent.

The Eye is following her way and Jongin loses count of how many plants he has cleaned, cut or pestled. He even hangs a few on the branch of the big tree to let them dry. Sometimes a tribe member shows up, talks with them and brings more herbs for them. A few bring finished ones and two other shamans help them for an hour.

“So, Jongin, your big day will be soon. Are you prepared?” Yongsun asked out of nowhere.

“Absolutely! I can't wait to get my task to show the whole tribe that I'm going to be a useful healer.”

This midsummer Jongin will be old enough to perform the Rite of the Path and everyone who passes it will be considered grown up and also be a hunter or a healer. After that he won't be a kid anymore, even if his body is already fully grown. There is always this one rite, fitted on every individual and their path. It's never the same, sometimes similar, but every rite is something special.

After passing it they can choose which way they want to go, what they want to do for the tribe. Nobody will think of them as a child anymore and they are even allowed to find a mate to go through the Binding Ceremony.

Of course Jongin can't wait to get his mission from the Great Shaman, disappear into the woods and show everyone that he's capable to do whatever the tribe needs him to do or find. He wants to make his parents,Yongsun and every other person who showed or taught him something proud. Make, first of all, himself proud.

“You'll pass the rite with no problem. I believe in you.”

“Thanks, Yongsun. I'm sure that I'll be really nervous but I'll give my best.”

“You're always giving your best, Jongin.” Her smile is warm and honest and Jongin can't help but grin like an idiot. She's right, he always gives his best. No matter what situation, he tries really hard. But he feels that most people here are like that. No wonder that he wants to fit in, wants to be a enrichment for the tribe.

“Are you coming with me?” he asks.

It's normal that you will leave the safety of the tribe for the Rite of the Path. Hunters often need to find and hunt an animal which is not common in the forest next to their tribe. Or they send healers out to find a rare plant that's not growing in their land. It's also part of the Rite to be able to live without the other tribe members. You need to know how to hunt, even if you're not going to be a hunter and you also need to know which plants are edible. Everyone learns that, but it's important to show them that you're doing good on your own. That you're strong enough to care for yourself, to live by yourself, even if their tribe is one big family.

But even if they send you out into the woods or mountains that you're not familiar with, they are not going to send you on your own. There are always a few hand picked people who will be there to witness your rite and protect you if something goes wrong.

And Jongin knows that his best friend Taemin will accompany him. And he will feel a lot safer if he knows that Yongsun is also by his side.

“I thought you would never ask. If you want me to come with you, of course I will”, she answers with her soft voice.

“Aah,” Jongin makes a sound of relief, “that's fantastic! Thanks Yongsun. You're the best. Now I'm absolutely sure that nothing can go wrong.”

Yongsun starts laughing. “Then I think it's time to show you how to brew the root medicine, hm?”

 

\- - -

 

He can hear the cracking of the bonfire, even through the thick leather wall of the tent.  
It's one of the biggest tents in their tribe and Jongin is rarely here. The air smells like incense sticks, like wood and lavender. Jongin adores the smell of lavender. It's calming and every time he is nervous he thinks about the plant. It's comforting and really helps him.

It's a little bit ironic, because right know he _is_ indeed nervous and he's not sure if the smell helps him. Maybe he's still jittery, but it's not a bad feeling. He has waited so long for this moment, something inside him is so exited, but, of course, also nervous.

A few days have passed by since Yongsun showed him how to brew the potion out of the red-roots. It is easier than he thought it would be and he's sure that he's already really good at it. It's probably not perfect but it will do its job.

Today is a warm day. A few hunters came back with a lot of good prey and the feast this evening was fantastic. He really enjoyed the stag, it was cooked and seasoned on point and the food is always better when the whole tribe (or at least most of them) comes together and shares the food. Summer is always a good time for them. Lots of fruits, vegetables, nuts and meat. It's also a lot easier to find enough things to create a big feast like today.

There is always a big feast for ceremonies, but in the winter it's never on a random day like today. Jongin always enjoys it. Not only because of the food – most of the time they would start to sing, play instruments, and of course, end up dancing.

If it was possible to be a professional dancer in the tribe he surely would be one. But, to be honest, there is not much use for someone who just dances at ceremonies. So it's better to stick with being a healer and only dance at ceremonies or on days like today. He can still do it often.

Today he couldn't dance long.

Only because Sunggyu, the Great Shaman, wanted to see him.

So Jongin is standing in this rather dark tent, that's smelling like wood and lavender, while the rest of the tribe is having fun, dancing around the bonfire, playing music and being a weird background noise.

“So,” Sunggyu begins.

He's sitting on a mat made out of delicate woods, while he is trying to light a joss stick with a candle made out of beewax. It takes a few seconds until the stick lights up for a short moment, lights out and glimmers. Good smelling smoke dances in the stifling air, filling the room with another scent and wandering to the small opening of the tent made for air circulation. Jongin is sure that they are not fully open just to give this big tent an even more sinister feel to it.

“So,” Sunggyu says again, putting the joss stick and the candle to the side, on a plate, before he's looking up at him.

Jongin is awkwardly standing two meters away from the shaman, not knowing what to do or say. His palms are wet and an unbearable feeling grows in his chest. He's not afraid. Not of Sunggyu or the mission for the rite. Jongin just can't wait to know what to do.

Someone outside is yelling something that Jongin can't understand, but he sounded really pleased. Maybe he had too much firewater.

“You're going to be a grown man in a few days and yet you're still standing here like I'm going to devour you in one piece. Come on, sit down.”

“Aye,” he brings out, not as confident as he wanted to.

Jongin sits down, cross-legged. The air down here is even more smothering and he fears that he needs to cough. How can the Great Shaman live in thick air like that?

“I remember my big day. The moment when the old shaman told me what I need to do to accomplish the rite. You know, the Rite of the Path is a really important one. Maybe the most significant one in your whole life.” He makes a dramatic pause. “Of course I had no problem fulfilling it, sure, I'm really good at the things I'm doing. Who would have guessed, I'm the Great Shaman after all.”

First Jongin was a little bit worried but the more Sunggyu was talking, the less he is taking him really serious. It's no news that Sunggyu praises himself. Well, he has every right to. He's good, otherwise their tribe wouldn't have chosen him to be one of their leaders. But in some way Jongin can't help but find it a little bit funny, because it was just hilarious how he said it and how he moved his hands while talking.

And Jongin gets the feeling that he maybe is trying to soothe him in his own way. And it helps.

“I know the story. I heard it a few times. Well, sometimes it was longer and more heroic than other times, but I'm sure tha-”

“Always believe the heroic ones. It's probably the right one.”

Jongin just grins at him and Sunggyu is looking back with a straight face, before he takes a deep breath.

“So, even if I would like to tell you the real, and really heroic, story about myself, I fear that's not the reason why I was calling you here.”

Jongin nods and Sunggyu continues his speech.

“The spirits were talking to me. You chose the way of the healer, the shaman, right?”

“Yes,” he simply answers.

“Wonderful. I always appreciate good healer and shamans in our tribe. It's great to be someone young members can look up to. And I heard that you're already doing a good job. You're enthusiastic and even if you're not you're still doing the things you need to. You understand how important it is to be part of the tribe and not let them carry you.”

He makes a pause again, while Jongin is still looking at him. Sunggyu looks a little bit scary in the spare light of the candles and the light of the fire that's shining through the small windows in the tent. His small eyes look even darker and he can see how the shine of the candles gets reflected in them. Like Jongin he's only wearing pants made out of leather and cloth.

“Our bear god was showing me the story of the fox and the snake. You know it?”

“Of course,” he answers. “Why did he show you this particular story?”

The story of the fox and the snake isn't as romantic as the one of the two moons. It's a story often told to children, a little bit darker, but he knows a lot of child-appropriate endings for it. Of course those endings take the meaning of the story, but sometimes Jongin isn't that sure how much meaning is behind those tales in the first place.

The snake was hungry, looking for food. He found a mouse and wanted to eat it. But the fox was faster. 'Sssstop sssstealing my food,' the snake said (Jongin always hears how his grandpa would try to imitate the sound of a snake, no one could tell the story as good as him). 'I was faster and my children are hungry,' the fox answers and goes away. Frustrated, the snake was looking for other food, could only find a few insects, but they didn't taste as good as mice. The next day the snake was still looking for food and, again, the fox took the mouse he wanted to eat. The snake was angry and bit the fox. The fox ran away and then an eagle appeared. It was eyeing the snake from afar and then tried to hunt it.  
The snake tried to wriggle away but was not fast enough.  
But the snake was lucky. Before the eagle could grip him the fox showed up and beat the eagle. In fear the eagle flew away. 'You resscued me,' the snake said. 'I did,' was the answer of the fox.  
At this point of the story most children get exited but then comes the plot twist: The venom of the snake showed its impact.  
In the end the fox died. Two days later the eagle came back and ate the snake.

Joning heard an ending in which, after the fox died, the snake was hunting more mice for the children of the fox and it tried really hard to play their mother because he was feeling bad. But that was not the original story.

But he is not sure what Sunggyu wants to tell him.

“Isn't it obvious?” the Great Shaman asks.

“...no?” Jongin answers subdued.

Sunggyu sighs. “Why did the fox die?”

“Ohh!” Jongin understood. “The venom!”

“Took you long enough.”

Jongin pouted for a second, but Sunggyu isn't paying him any attention.

“You wanna be a healer, maybe even a shaman. Sometimes people will need you because they're getting old and their body is slowly getting weaker. Sometimes an idiot like Myungsoo will shoot himself in the foot. Most of the time you're just gonna heal small wounds, but our beloved forest has a lot of snakes. Just a few moons ago one of our warriors died after a snake bite. We need to have more antidote on hand if something like that happens again and we're not fast enough to find the snake again. And this will be your task: To find one of the snakes, bring it back and take its venom. You don't need to do the last part by yourself, but it is all on you to find one, bring it here and not get bitten by it. And if it bites you, you better run back – with it of course.”

Jongin's eyes are still watching Sunggyu's face. He's listening to his words and something in him is a little bit disappointed that he doesn't have to go outside their territory. He really wanted to see something new. He was ready to discover more from Mother Earth.  
On the other hand he understands that it's not only a task to show his strength. It is also an important and useful one. It will probably help someone, sooner or later. Snake bites are not rare. Most of the people know how to spot snakes and dodge them, but incidents happen. Also, he has never caught a snake before and he really wants to try it now. Even if he is a little bit worried about the task. He really doesn't want to know how it feels to get bit by a snake.

“I hope it won't bite me,” he lets Sunggyu know.

“We will see,” he just answers. “You can talk to Seulgi, I'm sure she can help you with any questions you have about snakes. Also remember that this is not your only mission. You need to find something that Gom can bless, something for your necklace. You know it can be whatever you think is right. A piece of wood, a feather, some pearls, bones or a tooth. But don't just choose something, choose with your soul. I'm sure you will know what's the right thing to bring back with you.”

Jongin takes a deep breath from the thick air and nods. “I understand. Thank you so much.”

He did not forget about the second thing. His mother found a really beautiful piece of wood and carved it into an owl, while the necklace of his father has three really beautiful feathers in it. Gom, the bear god, the one their tribe worships, always blesses the items and everyone is wearing their necklace with a lot of pride. It's common to wear that necklace all the time. Some people would stop to wear it after a few summers, but for most of the members it has a really important meaning, even if the trinket would get dirty or fall apart. Some people would give it to their significant other to show them how true their feelings are.

Sunggyu waves his hand dismissively.

“Now that you know what to do... Do you want to hear what my task was, when I was as old as you? It's a really great story, you will love it, I'm sure.”

“Eh...” Jongin hesitates, catching Sunggyu's glance. “Yeah, sure, why not? Please tell me your story, Great Shaman.”

He doesn't really want to hear the story (because he knows it already – he knows a lot of versions of it), but Sunggyu didn't look like he was taking no for an answer.

“Great! It was a wonderful day when the old Great Shaman was calling me into his tent, I still remember the smell of the summer sun and...”

After a few minutes he isn't even listening anymore. Jongin's thoughts circle around the mission he has to fulfill and he can't wait to tell his friends and parents about it. Catching a snake is probably not that easy and he's not sure how he should do that, but with Seulgi's advice he will have a chance. There is no other option than to accomplish it, otherwise he would not dare to come back to the tribe.

 

\- - -

 

“A snake?” Taemin asked. “Not sure if that's lame or impressive. I've already seen a lot of snakes in the woods.”

“But you've never tried to catch them without getting bitten, right?”

“True,” Taemin gives in. “Do you think you can do it?”

“I already talked to Seulgi. She gave me a lot of good information, tricks and even tools. I think I can do it. Well, there is no other way than doing it.”

“Right. But we will find a snake, a big one, and you're going to bring it back.”

“Not a big one. I need a venomous snake, not a constrictor.”

“Whatever. You know what I mean. We're going to find an impressive snake. Better?”

Jongin laughs. “Better.”

He's sitting next to his best friend who is working on one of his spears. Taemin is his best friend since he can think about having any friends. He's one year older and a lot of people always think they're real brothers. For Jongin Taemin is his brother. Not by blood, but who cares about blood when you can call a wonderful person like Taemin your brother? He doesn't.

They both share their love for eating, dancing and sleeping. They are good at exploring things and their parents had a lot of trouble with them. Now Teamin is full-aged and Jongin will go on his mission in the next days. Probably they're still a team full of trouble and fun, but now they have a little bit more responsibility.

It was strange for everyone to hear that Jongin would go the way of the healer and not the path of the hunter like his best friend did. For Taemin and Jongin it has always been clear. 'I'm gonna fight everyone and you're gonna rescue my ass,' Taemin used to say. Jongin is sure that he's already rescued his ass a lot of times.

Taemin is a good hunter. Way better than Jongin, and he's also really good at making weapons. Spears, bows, arrows. He even made a dagger for Jongin.

“So, when are we leaving?”

“Tomorrow? Maybe the day after tomorrow. I really want to go as soon as possible, but my parents said that we still have to prepare a lot for my journey. Like... durable food and so on.”

“Do they think we need weeks for this task, or what?”

“Maybe we do need weeks for it,” Jongin says.

“Come on, Jongin, that's absurd. Yes, maybe we'll need a few days, but we will never take more than a week. It shouldn't be that hard to find a snake and... I don't know, some boring stone to match your personality.”

“A boring stone to matc- what?” he was asking indignantly, hitting Taemin's shoulder.

The older one laughed, holding his shoulder where Jongin just hit him.

“Take that back! I'm not boring.”

“Are you sure?” Taemin asked, grinning from one ear to the other.

“Shut up,” he says with a - of course faked - offended tone, before he snickers. Taemin is just teasing him. “At least it'll be something better than a dull bone.”

“It's not dull. It's full of meaning.”

“Yeah, sure,” Jongin says sarcastically.

He knows that the bone is one from the deer Taemin needed to hunt for his task. It was an old and ill one and it was the best choice to end its life before some wolves would have found it and gotten sick from eating the meat. He remembers how sad Taemin was, telling him that he needed to end a life because the animal was sick.

The hunters in their tribe are mainly hunting for food. But they never kill too much, it's only the food they need. Only the food The Mother gives them – and they don't dare to take more from her than she's offering. It's a circle, a balance. But sometimes they need to hunt sick animals, or animals who breed to much. Everything needs to stay in balance and every good hunter knows when to hunt and when to stand still.

But ending a life just because it's sick wasn't something Taemin was used to. And he didn't like it. Because they got nothing from the meat. They could not even use most of the leather, because it was that sick. For him it was just a sad task, but he did it anyway.

Taemin told him afterwards (he was too young to accompany him) that it didn't feel great and that he hoped that he only needed to hunt to feed the tribe or to keep them warm in the cold winter from now on.

So the bone has indeed a meaning for his best friend. It's a sign to remind him that there are things they need to do even if they are not that appealing.

“I'm really happy that you can come with me. I was so sad that I couldn't follow you to your task.”

“Of course I'm coming with you. What kind of friend would I be if I let you have so much fun alone? Looking for snakes and catching one sounds so insane, I like that.”

“Of course you like that,” he snorts, amused.

“I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun. And we better wear some really thick pants for that adventure.”

“We better do,” Jongin agrees, before they're both looking at the finished spear Taemin is holding in his hands. “Otherwise we maybe can't join the Celebration of the Eye.”

“Would be a shame to miss that. I can't wait to trade some materials with the Domabaeg tribe or the Firespears. Their weapons are so good, they are so much better with weapons than we are.”

“Yes, because they live differently, have other materials than we do. And they trade with the people from the other side of the big sea. Plus the Firespears are just plain warriors. You know the stories. I think it's always scary when they are around.”

“I wouldn't want to live in their tribe, but it's no lie to say that they have sharper knives and better armor. You wouldn't fear a damn snake bite if you were wearing a good armor.”

“I'd rather wear no armor than grow up in a tribe full of scary warriors. I don't trust them to be honest. I liked the Ceremony of the Eye better without them. I think the Bloodfeathers are fine, but the Firespears? … scary!”

Taemin giggles. “Well then you need to be nice when we see one of them at the feast. I'm sure they're not going to kill you if you don't provoke them.”

“You can never be sure. Not after all those stories. I'd rather listen do Sunggyu's story again and forget all the things I've heard about them,” Jongin snorts.

“I'm sure he'll tell you more legendary tales about him if you just ask him.”

“No doubt. But hey! I'm gonna be all grown up when we celebrate The Eye with the other tribes.”

“So you're having an open eye. Looking for someone cute?”

“Why not? There are a lot of pretty people in the Bloodfeather tribe. Or the Domabaeg one.”

“But you wouldn't leave me for someone, right?”

“Never. I will stay here. Or you need to come with me.”

“Well, we can just do the whole rite for mates,” Taemin jokingly throws in.

Jongin laughs. “Forget it. Never in one hundred summers.”

“Well, your loss.”

“But wouldn't it be fantastic to find someone and fall in love? Like the Blue Moon.”

Taemin rolls his eyes. “You just want to share your pelts with someone, just say it.”

“What? No! Well... yes, I also want to, but I also want to fall-”

“Sure, sure. Alright Jongin, alright.”

Jongin opens his mouth with a scandalized expression. “You're just salty because Joohyun doesn't want to know a thing about you.”

“That's not true! She was just not ready for me. But maybe she is this summer. I'm sure she would like some nice presents. Like this spear? What do you think?”

“Well then she doesn't need to look for a weapon to get rid of you...”

Taemin shoots him a angry look and Jongin starts to laugh at him. In the end both young men laugh together. It's their kind of friendship to be mean to each other, without really meaning it. Jongin would be so excited if Taemin found someone who would take care of him and he's sure that Taemin would also be really happy for him. But he can't image to live apart from his best friend. It would be really boring without Taemin's nasty comments.

Talking about different stuff is great. It really does make him feel good not to think about his rite all the time. It's a really important thing for him but it's also necessary to think about the things in the near future. He always needs a purpose.

And speaking to someone nice at the Ceremony of The Eye would be a small but great goal. He doesn't care if he'll fall in love or not, but he just wants to make more friends and learn more about the other tribes. Well... not all tribes, but their allied ones.

But first he needs to show his tribe that he is now a full grown man.


End file.
